In order to straighten or curl one's hair using a straightening comb or curling iron, locks of hair are passed through the tines of a hot comb or are rolled around the curling iron. When doing this, it is desirable to get as close to the scalp as possible. When this procedure is done by a skilled hair stylist, it is unusual to burn a patron's ear, but when done at home, women frequently burn their ears. Other than being unattractive, ear burns are not usually serious; but upon occasion, an ear burn can become infected or not heal properly so as to require medical attention and perhaps leave a permanent scar. In any event, ear burns are an injury to be avoided.
The patent literature includes a number of inventions directed to ear protectors which shield ears from curling irons. To the inventor's knowledge, none of these inventions have achieved sufficient commercial significance so as to be widely available, if available at all. For example, in 1929, U.S. Pat. No. 1,697,102 issued to a Lillian Barrington. This ear protector had a particular size and shape. Since there is a wide variety of ear sizes and shapes, this protector requires an enormous variety of configurations for commercial success and requires that ears be sorted into sizes such as is the case for shoes, hats and just about every other item of clothing. A more recent patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,954 which issued on Jun. 18, 1991 to Calvin R. Lyons requires a Velcro.RTM.-attached headband to hold ear protectors in place with the position of the ear protectors requiring slidable adjustment on the headband. Ear protectors have been used for other purposes such as to prevent shampoo and other treatment substances from entering the ears. Such protectors are illustrated in patents such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,763,869 and 2,812,517 to Bogart, et al. Again, these ear protectors are relatively complex in structure and require some arrangement for adjusting the physical configuration of the protector to accommodate ears of various sizes and shapes.
In view of the aforementioned considerations, there is a need for ear protectors which are especially suitable for women with short hair styles who hot curl their own hair so as to avoid ear burns from hot curling irons, which burns are both embarrassing and unattractive. Such protectors should be easy to use, easy to clean and comfortable to wear. They should also be configured for use by professional hair dressers so as to avoid the occasional burn which might occur at a beauty salon. Since the ear protectors are primarily for personal use and are used over and over again, they need to be easy to clean, lightweight, compact and of a durable construction, and should be easily manufacturable in different colors.